Fluid control valve mechanism



May 17, 1949;

H. C. M CONNELL, JR

FLUID CONTROL VALVE MECHANISM Filed Nov. 30, 1946 [12:15:12 L 01" 12 [Z Ma 0111191], J1:

H i y Patented May 17,1949

FLUID CONTROL VALVE MECHANISM Hugh 0. MacConnell, Jr., West Hartford, Conn.,

assignor to Hartford-Empire Company, Hartford, Conn., a corporation of Delaware Application November 30, 1946, Serial No. 713,242

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates generally to improvements in valve mechanisms for regulating the flow of fluid to and from fluid pressure cylinders or other fluid utilizing mechanisms. The present invention relates more particularly to a valve mechanism that may be used to advantage in conjunction with a variety of glassware forming machinery.

It is an object of this invention to provide an inexpensive, simple, reliable valve mechanism that can be used to regulate the flow of pressurized fluid to a fluid utilizing device and the exhaust of fluid therefrom in a regulated timed sequence.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a valve mechanism which may be used to regulate the movements of a reciprocable piston in both its directions of motion so that the piston may be moved without undesirably large decelerations during the latter portion of the pistons movement in either direction.

A still further object of the present invention is the provision of a fluid control valve that may be given a variety of predetermined fluid regulating positions by a rotary cam, the positions of the valve mechanism being mechanically fixed by a latching member.

A more specific object of the present invention is the provision of a unitary valve mechanism which may be operated to control the feeding and exhausting of fluid to and from both ends of a double-acting piston and cylinder mechanism to impart thereto a predetermined sequence of operations.

A still further object of the present invention is the provision of a Valve mechanism for use in conjunction with a double-acting cylinder and piston mechanism, the valve being so constructed as to permit a regulated exhaust of fluid from both ends of the cylinder simultaneously when the valve has a given predetermined position.

Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be pointed out and will become apparent in the course of the following description which has particular reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a preferred embodiment of the present novel valve mechanism in operative relationship with a portion of a rotary actuating cam assembly and a conventional double-acting piston and cylinder mechanism which is indicated by dot-and-dash lines, a movable spool member of the valve being shown in its lowermost operating position in which pressurized fluid may be fed to one end of the cylinder and fluid may be exhausted at a regulated rate from the other end of the cylinder;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the valve mechanism showing the movable spool member in its intermediate operatin position in which fluid may be exhausted from both ends of the cylinder to the atmosphere simultaneously;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the valve mechanism showing the movable spool member in its uppermost operating position in which pressurized fluid may be fed to one end of the cylinder and fluid may be exhausted at a regulated rate from the end of the cylinder to which pressurized fluid is fed when the valve is in the position shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a side View of a portion of the rotary cam assembly showing a portion of a latching member of the valve mechanism and its spaced relationship with a valve lever of the valve mechanism.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a valve body or housing and a spooltype movable valve member retained therein, the valve housing having a plurality of flow passages communicating with appropriately located throttle valves and pipe lines, certain of the pipe lines communicating with a conventional double-acting cylinder and piston device or other fluid utilizing mechanism. The present invention also contemplates a valve lever and latching member which, when suitably actuated by radial projections on a rotary cam drum, will move the spool valve to any one of a variety of positions and maintain the spool valve in any given position, respectively, until the latching member is moved out of engagement with the valve lever by release members adjustably secured to the periphery of the cam drum. The construction of the valve mechanism, as will be more fully described hereinafter, is such that either end of the associated cylinder may be pressurized while the opposite end of the cylinder is being exhausted to atmospheric pressure. The spool valve may be moved to and maintained in a suitable intermediate position whereby both ends of the cylinder may be exhausted to the atmosphere simultaneously.

The details of construction of the present embodiment are clearly shown in Fig. 1. A valve body or housing, generally designated I, is formed to define a vertical partial bore or valve chamber 2. Disposed therein is a movable spool valve, generally designated 3, spool valve 3 having upper and lower annular grooves 4 and 5,

municating With bore 2 and pipe line II which A fiow passage I is provided above passage 8 in housing, I, com' is connected to the uppermost "region 'of-"port'ioir 6a of cylinder 6. v I v v located at a level below passage 8, communicates with bore 2 and pipe line I3which' is connected to the lowermost region of portion 6b of cylinder 6. Designated I I and IT in Fig. 1 are fiow"pas sages in valve housing 'I at a level above and below passage 8, respectively; throug'hwln'ch ex haust products from portions 6a"and-6b,'r.e'spe'c-' tively, of cylinder 6 may'pass to'pipe' nipples I5 and I8, respectively. Adjustable throttling valves I6 and I9 are connected to pipe'nipples I5and' I8) respectively.

The lower end portion or stem of 'spoolvalve 3 extends downward from valve 'ho'using I. through a reduced downward extension' 2a ofthe bore 2 and is rounded toform' a hemispherical. tap'pet end 200; A horizontally disposedpivoted valve lever 2 I is mounted on'pivotpin 22'f0r'1im ite'd swinging movements in a vertical "plane: A small projection'23"isprovided on one *end'of' lev'er- 2 I for a purpose to' bei'nore fullydescribed presently. Disposed'ab'ove spoo1 valv'e'3 in' bore 2' is a 'valve spring, the acti'on'of which is to force spool valve 3 aownwarmyto make bearing contact between tappet end 20a of the spool valveand' valve lever 2 I. Ala'tcliin'g member 25'is-piv otally mounted on a horizontal pivot pin- 26,-th'e' latching member having 'limited"swi'nging movements in a vertical-planel Disposed between-a portionof valve housing'I an'da face of thel'atcli' 'ing member is a compression coil-'spring-fl, the

tendency of which "is -to=forcelatchingmember'- 25 into engagement with projection' '2'3 of valve lever- 2I' Lat'chin'g member' 25 has lower and upper notches or recesses 28 and"29,"resp-ective1y,dis posed for cooperative engagement with'projection- 23' of member 2 I.

Operatively disposed beneaththe'val've mechanism'is'a rotary camdrum 30'. Adjust'abl'y'se curedto the cam drum ar'e actuating button-s31 and 32. are latching member release members- 33 'and 34 5 respectively. A sloping -face 35 is providedon a lower portion-of the valve lever 2|! Members 3! and 32 are of su'fiicient radialextenttomake bearing contact with. fa'ce"35"inv thecourseof the rotation of those members-about the rotational center line of the rota-ry'drum. It will benoted" that button 32 is of: greater radialzextent; thatis,v longer than buttonxfiI an'dfithat button '3Ii'willl contact face 35 at an: earlier time intheirotation of cam drum '30 than button 32.-

When the movable parts are in the 'positionsshown in Fig. 1, the spool valve will bein-its-lowermost position and valve lever '2I willwbe-at rest in its lowermost position'as determined bythe butting of" extension 36 of-one-end of the valve lever on-a portion of valve housing I When spool valve 3 is in this positiongpressurizeni fluid may flow from inlet pipe 9 through flow'pass-age B to annular groove 4 and thencetoflow passage III: 75?

Also"a'dj-ustably securedto cam drum-30* 4 From flow passage l0, pressurized fluid may flow by pipe line II to portion 6a of cylinder 6. At the same time, any pressurized fluid in portion 61) of cylinder 6 may flow through pipe line I3 to flow passage I2 and thence to annular groove 5 which, in turn, is in communication with flow passage I1. Pressurized fluid in passage I! may pass' through pipe'nipple =I8'to throttling valve I9 frornfwhich it may escape-to thetatmosphere at a rate determined by the amount of opening of the throttle valve. It Will be obvious to those skille-d in-theart that under the hereinbefore described conditions, piston I will be forced downwardlymnder the action of the pressurized sa'ge' through thrbttle valve I9 may be regulated to such a small=size that the fluid in portion 6b of the cylinder will vent therefrom to the atmosnereat a relatively slow rate. Under these conditions, piston I will tend to compress the fluid in po'rtion 'Sb of the cylinder and willthereby form an' ai'r cushion to gradually decelerate piston 1 during the'latter portion of its downward movemerit.

After a predetermined displacement of piston! downwardly; the low' actuating button- 3| may con't'ac't' face' '35 of valve lever 2 I; thereby raising the valve lever to the position shown in Fig; 2. It will be "not'ed' that projection *23 'of the valve will be in contactvrith the valve lever-and will be displaced upwardly from the 1 position shown in When the spool 'valve is in the position Fig. '1. shOw'n-irrFig; 2, neither annular groove 4 "nor groove 5will-=bein communication with the incoming feed line Bflbut, instead, annular groove 4 will be in communicationwithexhaust passage I4 and annular groove" 5 wi 11 be in communication with exhaust passage "ll-. Thus, fluid may exhaust from: portionfia of the cylinder (not shown P in Fig.- 2) to passage IIl'and thereafterto passage time, fluid may exhaust from portion 6b of the cyli'nderto flow passage-IT byway of passage I2 and annular groove-5; Thus, this position of the spool'valve permits the exhausting "of both'ends ofthe cylinder to atmospheric pressure simultan'ously;

As the cam drum continues to rotate, the high actuating button 32 will come into bearing contact with face-35"of the'valve lever in a fashion similar to that hereinbefore' described relative tobutton 3i. Valve lever 'ZI -and spool valve '3 will again be moved upwardly'and proj'ecti'on 23 will become engaged with notch or recess 29 of the latching member;

in Fig. 3. It will be'evidentfrom Fig. 3 that,

when the valve is in this position, Pressurizedfiuid may flow-from in'comin'g lin'e 9'to portion 6b of the cylinder by: way of annular groove 5- and that fluid may-exhaust from portionta of thecylinder to flow passage I4 by'way of annular groove 4. Under these condition's, piston 1 will be-moved' upwardly 'un'derthe-influence of fluid pressure inportion fib of'the-cylinder and; if a sufficient restriction be 'caused by"a suitable ad justment of 'throttlevalve I16; asubstantiaI compression of fluid in portion 6a may result and thereby'cushion piston 1 'duringthe latter portion of its-upward movement.

This valveposition is showndefine a plurality of circumferential grooves 31, each groove being of an essentially T-shaped cross section as shown at 38. Releasably secured at predetermined angular positions along one of these grooves 31 are buttons 3| and 32 and release members 33 and 34. It is "to be noted that the width of latching member is substantially greater than the width of valve lever 2| and is displaced to the right as viewed in Fig. 4. Release members 33 and 34 have radial projections 39 and 40, respectively, the projections extending outwardly at one side of the release members in position to contact with the depending end of latch member 25 but to by-pass lever 2| without interference therewith. It is also to be noted that projection 40 is of greater radial extent, that is, longer than projection 39 for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

The valve position will be changed from that shown in Fig. 3 to that shown in Fig. 2 by the contact of portion 39 of release member 33 with the lower depending end of latch member 25. Projection 23 of valve lever 2| will thereby be lowered one notch on the latching member. The same fluid flow conditions will again obtain as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 2. As projection 40 of release member 34 comes into bearing contact with the lower depending end of latching member 25, projection 23 of the valve lever will be released from notch 28 and the valve will return to the operating position shown in Fig. 1 with the same attendant fluid flow regulating conditions. During all the aforementioned movements of valve lever 2|, spool valve 3 will be constrained to move with correlated movements by the downward acting force of valve spring 24. A threaded plug 4| may be provided at the upper end portion of bore 2 to centralize spring 24 and close off the upper end of the bore. Small vent holes 42 and 43 may be provided in plug 4| and the valve housing, respectively, to vent the portions of bore 2 above and below valve member 3, respectively, to the atmosphere. These vent holes will effectively discharge any leakage between the valve member 3 and bore 2 and will prevent undesirable vacuum formation in the course of movements of the valve member.

From the foregoing description, it will be evident that the disclosed valve mechanism may be moved to any one of three definite fixed positions: one position whereby fluid is fed to one end of the cylinder and slowly exhausted at a predetermined rate from the other end of the cylinder, the throttling of the exhaust forming an air cushion for the movement of the piston; a second valve position whereby fluid is exhausted from both ends of the associated cylinder; and a third position whereby fluid is admitted to the opposite end of the cylinder and exhausted from the first-mentioned end of the cylinder, the throttling of the exhaust forming an air cushion during the reversed motion of the piston opposite to the motion resulting from the first valve position.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the sequence and timing of the movements of the valve may be varied at will by a suitable shifting of the angular location of buttons 3| and 32 and release members 33 and 34. It will also be evident that by removing one or more of the actuating buttons or release members, the sequence of movements of the valve mechanism may be changed at will to suit the conditions of operation of the associated fluid utilizing mechanism.

I claim:

1. In combination, a valve housing formed to define a bore therein and having a transverse fluid inlet passage, a pair of transverse fluid feed passages, and a pair of transverse fluid exhaust passages extending from said bore to the exterior of said valve body, a spool valve having a pair of annular grooves formed therein, said spool valve being movably disposed in said bore and having one end projecting from said valve housing to serve as a tappet member, a horizontal pivotally mounted valve lever cooperatively disposed with said end of said spool valve, 2.

pivoted latching member secured for cooperative engagement with said valve lever, and actuating means cooperative with said valve lever and said latching member to position said spool valve in each of three operating positions, said three operating positions of said spool valve regulating the flow of pressurized fluid from said inlet passage to each of said feed passages and from said feed passages to said exhaust passages by way of said annular grooves, in timed sequence.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, and, in addition, adjustable regulable valves to control the flow of exhaust fluid from said exhaust passages.

3. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 in which said actuating means comprises a cam drum, a pair of projecting actuating members radially projecting therefrom for coaction with said valve lever, and a pair of release members radially projecting from said cam drum for coaction with said latching member.

4. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, and, inaddition, a compression coil spring to maintain said spool valve in bearing contact with said valve lever.

5. In combination, a valve body, a vertically movable valve disposed therein and extending therefrom to form a tappet face, a horizontal pivoted valve lever cooperatively disposed relative to said tappet face, a projection formed on one end of said valve lever, a vertical pivoted latching member having a pair of vertically spaced notches for cooperative engagement with said projection of said valve lever, and actuating means effective to raise said valve lever to its engaged position with the first notch of said latching member and after a predetermined time period to raise said valve lever to its engaged position with said second notch, thereafter to effect disengagement of said valve lever from said second named notch to release it for engagement with said first named notch and after a predetermined time period to effect disengagement of said valve lever from said first notch to permit it to return to its lowermost initial position, the movements of said valve lever imparting to said valve a sequence of predetermined definite upward movements followed thereafter by a sequence of predetermined downward movements to return said valve to its initial position.

6. Apparatus as defined in claim 5 wherein said actuating means comprises a rotary drum having a groove on its periphery, a pair of angularly adjustable actuating buttons of different lengths releasably secured in said groove for coaction with said valve lever but to by-pass said latching member, and a pair of angularly adjustable release members of different lengths releasably secured in said groove to by-pass said valve lever but to coact with said latching member to disengage said valve lever from its engagemg t with the notches of said latching xiimber in flimed s'duni c. MACCONNEIL, J11 REFERENCES ciTED The following referefl'ces aile of rec'ord in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PA'I'ENT'S- N umher Name Date Skifinf NOV. 6, 1883 MdCaifier Mar. 4, 1884 Vickr's July 10', 1934 Halle'r'ibck Sept. 29 1936 Maglott Sept. 12, 1939 Lynafii Mar. 4, 1941-! Eastman Feb. 24, 1948 

